I'll Fly Away

The other day I shared Dickinson’s “My cocoon tightens – Colors tease,” a poem about a seemingly awkward transformation with discomfort and even teasing and embarrassment in the opening line and line 4, leading later to flight. The speaker foresees a brighter future, though – sensing “A dim capacity for Wings” – and it is that line the sets the stage for my post today.  I discovered a work by poet Edward Mayes entitled “A Dim Capacity for Wings.”

Below:  Dickinson's "My cocoon tightens – Colors tease."

Below: Edward Mayes' poem, "A Dim Capacity for Wings"

I must admit, though, that I’m more than somewhat confused by the poem, and I’m hoping maybe someone can help.  What is this poem about?  I’m not really sure.

First, in lines 1 thru 5, there is water imagery.  Has someone fallen overboard from a boat (see lines 2/3) or has there been a flash flood (see line 5)?  Is someone drowning – literally or figuratively – and is their life flashing before their eyes?  In Dickinson’s poem, line 2 states, “I’m feeling for the air,” which certainly works with the “possible drowning” idea – but Dickinson’s poem centers on transformation in the sense of things to come.  Mayes’ poem conveys more a sense of what has been.  “Que fue” vs. “Que sera.”

Concerning Mayes’ poem:

Lines 6, 7 & 8:  If ones’ life is “flashing before their eyes,” have they remembered odd bits of trivia they knew – and no one cared?

Lines 9 & 10:  Is this a reference to monotonous work in office cubicles?  Lines 10 & 11 – more trivia?

Line 12:  Is this a humorous reference to aging via footwear?

Line 13:  Is this a reference to “adulting” responsibilities (in the way of yard work)?  And then with line 14, is this some reference to having seen something that held meaning to the person – say, artifacts in a museum (like the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame)?

Lines 15 & 16:  Is this a meaningful realization about “steering” one’s own life?

Lines 17 thru 20 – More “realizations” later in life (though I’m not sure what all of them might mean).

Line 21 thru 24:  Are these images hints of a recent mid-life crisis?

Lines 24 & 25: Is this a reference to how things have changed, and possibly some regrets?
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Line 28 into line 29:  More regrets; lines 29 to 30: More realizations; line 30 to 31: More mid-life crisis; and finally line 32:  Acceptance – it is what it is?

I noticed almost immediately that the poem is written as one sentence – 32 lines in 8 stanzas – and the fast-paced, single stream-of-consciousness statement works with the “life flashing before one’s eyes” idea.  However, what threw me was the opening clause, “We’re not sure you caught that….’  Who is the “We”?  And I’m assuming the “you” used throughout the poem is not ME – but the entity in the poem addressed by the “We.”  

Shown at the right:  Mayes' poem with the pronouns highlighted.  Who is speaking -- the "We" of the poem? 

However, this perspective – the “We” and the “you” they are addressing – does not seem to work with my take on “drowning” – whether drowning literally or drowning figuratively.  Unless – and this notion (based on the final stanza of Dickinson's poem) seems to be quite a stretch – the “you” in the poem “baffles at the Hint” of the “clue divine” provided by the "We," and thereby perceives “a dim capacity for wings”?
 
I’m so confused.  Am I missing something here?  Am I way off base?    

What does Mayes’ poem suggest to you?

Help me! I’m drowning!